So you find yourself fantasising about your dream job once again. What are you envisioning? A job in a field that you’re interested in with a nice boss, friendly colleagues, a decent pay check and the weekends off. Sounds great but what if your boss gets replaced, you need to work additional hours independently or your wages get reduced? Will it remain your dream job or will these external factors knock off the initial gleam of your once glittering career choice?

So, does the dream job exist? The majority of people will answer no to this question after a moment’s thought and there are a few reasons why.

Firstly, if comparing yourself to others comes as second nature, you will likely never encounter your dream job. Avoid lusting over other people’s jobs because you’re probably fixating on the best aspects of their work. You may be jealous of your friend’s job who gets paid to travel frequently to various exciting destinations. What you may not take into account is that same person may find it difficult, constantly jetting off to exotic locations in an effort to keep up with the demands of the job. In theory, any job can sound close to perfection when you are not experiencing it first-hand.

Hearing about someone else’s job should not strike up a feeling of envy inside and if it does you should consider that there is no such thing as a free meal. Keeping this in mind, everyone endures the same days of the week. No matter how much you love your job, Monday mornings roll around and you tend not to jump out of bed singing with a smile on your face (if you do, people would probably queue up outside of your house to uncover why).

Everyone hits that snooze button at least once to soak up the last few moments in their warm bed before bracing the world yet again. Mondays happen to everyone. Mid-week slumps happen to everyone. Sometimes work can become a little mundane, however this does not mean you don’t have a dream job, you could simply be exhausted. Lack of inspiration or motivation is only permanent if you do nothing to change it.

“If you do something you love, you won’t work a day in your life.” While this is a nice sentiment, it is understandable if you cannot relate to it. It may depend on whether you thrive off intrinsic or extrinsic work satisfaction. Intrinsic work satisfaction focuses on the type of work you do and the elements that make up the job. For example, if you seek a job to primarily care for others you may thrive as a carer or in a nursing career. People who focus on extrinsic work satisfaction will derive happiness through outside factors such as their wage, working conditions and co-workers. This could explain why some people may not understand when a taxi driver, for example, may love their job despite their working conditions or late shifts. What is often overlooked is that they love being a taxi driver due to the social dynamics at play. If your job makes you fulfilled, then persevere with it regardless of the self-appointed negative adjudicators.

Conversely, if you consistently dread going to work it is worth looking at what is causing the discomfort. Write down anything you think is holding you back or making your job in any way intolerable then come up with possible solutions. Most people won’t land their dream job on their first (or even fifth) attempt so if you are serious about attaining a job that you love don’t be afraid to take risks and follow different career paths. Remaining in a profession or environment that you don’t feel comfortable with will not help you find job satisfaction.
With this in mind, the only thing truly stopping you from loving your job is yourself. Once you accept that some factors contributing to your overall work experience are out of your control and decide whether to actively deal with them or not you are a step closer to finding your dream job. If you go to bed feeling satisfied with the work you are doing, whether you are an accountant, photographer or cleaner, you may have found the ‘illusive’ dream job.

Now that the holidays have finished, and everything is slowly returning to its usual routine. It... more»

Dream Jobs: Fact or Fantasy?

September 17, 2016 (No Comments) by theSharpeUser

So you find yourself fantasising about your dream job once again. What are you envisioning? A job in a field that you’re interested in with a nice boss, friendly colleagues, a decent pay check and the weekends off. Sounds great but what if your boss gets replaced, you need to work additional hours independently or your wages get reduced? Will it remain your dream job or will these external factors knock off the initial gleam of your once glittering career choice?

So, does the dream job exist? The majority of people will answer no to this question after a moment’s thought and there are a few reasons why.

Firstly, if comparing yourself to others comes as second nature, you will likely never encounter your dream job. Avoid lusting over other people’s jobs because you’re probably fixating on the best aspects of their work. You may be jealous of your friend’s job who gets paid to travel frequently to various exciting destinations. What you may not take into account is that same person may find it difficult, constantly jetting off to exotic locations in an effort to keep up with the demands of the job. In theory, any job can sound close to perfection when you are not experiencing it first-hand.

Hearing about someone else’s job should not strike up a feeling of envy inside and if it does you should consider that there is no such thing as a free meal. Keeping this in mind, everyone endures the same days of the week. No matter how much you love your job, Monday mornings roll around and you tend not to jump out of bed singing with a smile on your face (if you do, people would probably queue up outside of your house to uncover why).

Everyone hits that snooze button at least once to soak up the last few moments in their warm bed before bracing the world yet again. Mondays happen to everyone. Mid-week slumps happen to everyone. Sometimes work can become a little mundane, however this does not mean you don’t have a dream job, you could simply be exhausted. Lack of inspiration or motivation is only permanent if you do nothing to change it.

“If you do something you love, you won’t work a day in your life.” While this is a nice sentiment, it is understandable if you cannot relate to it. It may depend on whether you thrive off intrinsic or extrinsic work satisfaction. Intrinsic work satisfaction focuses on the type of work you do and the elements that make up the job. For example, if you seek a job to primarily care for others you may thrive as a carer or in a nursing career. People who focus on extrinsic work satisfaction will derive happiness through outside factors such as their wage, working conditions and co-workers. This could explain why some people may not understand when a taxi driver, for example, may love their job despite their working conditions or late shifts. What is often overlooked is that they love being a taxi driver due to the social dynamics at play. If your job makes you fulfilled, then persevere with it regardless of the self-appointed negative adjudicators.

Conversely, if you consistently dread going to work it is worth looking at what is causing the discomfort. Write down anything you think is holding you back or making your job in any way intolerable then come up with possible solutions. Most people won’t land their dream job on their first (or even fifth) attempt so if you are serious about attaining a job that you love don’t be afraid to take risks and follow different career paths. Remaining in a profession or environment that you don’t feel comfortable with will not help you find job satisfaction.
With this in mind, the only thing truly stopping you from loving your job is yourself. Once you accept that some factors contributing to your overall work experience are out of your control and decide whether to actively deal with them or not you are a step closer to finding your dream job. If you go to bed feeling satisfied with the work you are doing, whether you are an accountant, photographer or cleaner, you may have found the ‘illusive’ dream job.